1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a film data recording/reproducing apparatus and, more particularly, it relates to an apparatus comprising a data recording unit for storing data on a camera film and a data reproducing unit for retrieving data recorded on a camera film for the sake of convenience of handling a camera film after it has been used for shooting and developed.
2. Description of the Related Art
It is a known practice to use part of a camera film to record such data as the dates when and the situations where it is used for shooting.
While a newspaper camera man normally writes down on a piece of paper messages telling when and where the pictures were taken on the camera film he has just turned in so that the messages may always accompany the film after it is developed, it will be a great convenience for him if he can write down the messages directly on the camera film.
A clerk in a commercial library house storing a large volume of films may have to single out a particular film each time he or she receives an order for it from a client, e.g., an advertising agent or a publisher, consuming considerable time even if the films are classified into categories. It will save time and cost enormously if those films carry respective data on them that provide cues for film retrieval operations.
Technologies for storing data on part of a film are disclosed, for instance, in Publication Unexamined Japanese Patent Application No. 62-208028, Publication Unexamined Japanese Patent Application No. 2-148030, Publication Unexamined Japanese Patent Application No. 2-149835, Publication Unexamined Japanese Patent Application No. 51-95837, Publication Unexamined Japanese Utility Model Application No. 48-38841, Publication Unexamined Japanese Utility Model No. 62-116243, Publication Unexamined Japanese Utility Model No. 1-166332 and Publication Unexamined Japanese Utility Model No. 1-171438.
Some of the disclosed technologies are related to the use of bar codes on a 35 mm color film for indication of frame numbers and that of punched holes for a color film for indication of the type of film, while others relates to methods of imprinting the dates of film shooting and other data on a film.
According to these known technologies, the dates of film shooting and other data may be imprinted on the respective pictures of a film or, alternatively, such data may be recorded on the margin of a film along with other data so that a relatively large amount of information may be stored on a film.
While known technologies may easily meet the requirement of storing the dates of film shooting and other relatively simple data on a film, they can hardly be adapted to store a large amount of data on the margin of a film where frame numbers, the sensitivity of the film, the manufacturer's name and other pieces of information are already imprinted.
In short, known technologies are not compatible with the use of bar codes and mechanically punched holes and cannot accommodate a large volume of data. Thus, up until now, the old and conventional technique of writing letters on the film holder of a film or on the back of a printed picture provides a best way for storing data.
Since printed pictures do not carry any data, it is often a cumbersome and painstaking job to write down relevant messages on the back of each printed picture, turning front and back to confirm the relevancy of the messages to the picture.
Additionally, it is also painstaking to read the messages on the back of printed pictures because they are often scribbled in letters that can hardly be deciphered.